Residents of Onitsha are angry. Heavy flooding has damaged vehicles along Owerri Road. Their question is blunt: “How can you construct a road without drainage?” They are calling on Governor Chukwuma Soludo to act. The flooding follows heavy rainfall. It has disrupted traffic and business. Vehicles have been damaged. The road is unusable in parts. The residents say the problem is structural. The road was built without adequate drainage. Water has nowhere to go. It pools on the surface and destroys the asphalt. The residents want accountability.
Onitsha has a long history of flooding. The city sits on the Niger River. Its topography is flat. Drainage systems are inadequate. In 2012, floods displaced thousands across Anambra. In 2022, similar flooding hit Onitsha and other parts of the state. Successive administrations promised drainage improvements. The promises rarely materialised. Road construction without drainage is a recurring failure. Contractors cut corners. Supervision is weak. The result is infrastructure that fails with the first heavy rain.
The flooding on Owerri Road is the latest example. Residents say the road was recently constructed or rehabilitated. They question how the contractor omitted drainage. They say vehicles are being damaged. Commuters are stranded. Businesses are losing customers. The economic cost is immediate. The political cost may follow. Governor Soludo has made infrastructure a priority. His administration has commissioned road projects across the state. This road is now a liability. The residents want him to intervene. They want drainage built. They want the road fixed. They also want accountability. Who approved the design? Who supervised the construction? Those questions remain unanswered.
The pattern is familiar. Anambra has seen road projects fail due to poor planning. The state government has pledged reforms. Implementation lags. The rainy season exposes the gaps every year.
Winners: Contractors who built the road without drainage and got paid. Officials who approved the design without scrutiny. Losers: Residents and commuters who face flooding. Vehicle owners whose cars are damaged. Businesses that lose trade. Governor Soludo, whose infrastructure record faces scrutiny. Taxpayers whose money built a road that cannot drain.
Bottom Line: A road without drainage is not infrastructure. It is a trap. Onitsha residents know this. They are asking Soludo to prove he does too.